My Son, the Hero (1962)
"Arrivano i titani" (original title)

An evil king makes a bargain with a devil in order to get away with murdering his wife.

Director:

Duccio Tessari

Writers:

Ennio De Concini (adaptation), Duccio Tessari (adaptation)

Stars:

Pedro Armendáriz, Giuliano Gemma, Antonella Lualdi

Cast

Credited cast:
Pedro Armendáriz	...	Cadmo
Giuliano Gemma	...	Krios
Antonella Lualdi	...	Ermione
Serge Nubret	...	Rator
Jacqueline Sassard	...	Antiope
Gérard Séty	...	Aquiles
Tanya Lopert	...	Licina
Ingrid Schoeller	...	Emerate
Franco Lantieri	...	Tarete
Monica Berger
Maria Luisa Rispoli	...	Marzia (as Luisa Rispoli)
Isarco Ravaioli	...	Centinela
Fernando Rey	...	Sumo Sacerdote / High Priest
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Aldo Pedinotti	...	A Titan
Fernando Sancho

Storyline

Krios, the youngest of the Titans, may be the least strong of the seven brothers whose strength comes from their mother, earth-goddess Gaia, but is by far the smartest, and thus their natural leader. He arrives on Crete, the kingdom of the mighty king Minos, impresses him as gladiator, gains his trust, falls in love with a mortal girl and discovers both Minos's human sacrifice-cult and a foreign conspiracy to seize power with a hidden army.

---

Plot Keywords:

crete | murder of wife | pact with devil | peplum | chained to wall | 

---

Taglines:

A GIANT SPECTACLE...Shot in Spain for Peanuts!

---

Genres:

Adventure | Fantasy

---

Details

Country:

Italy France

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

18 September 1963 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Titans

Company Credits

Production Co:

Filmsonor, Les Films Ariane, Vides Cinematografica

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

User Reviews

The Crimson Titan

Cadmo, the King of Crete (Pedro Armandarez) has learned the power of immortality from his mistress. He kills his wife and takes his mistress as a wife. For this, the Oracle tells him he will `die' at the hand of infant young daughter's future love. Should King Cadmo kill his daughter, he will perish at the same moment. Cadmo locks his daughter away. The only man she can see is Cadmo. The Greek god Jove, visits Hades, where his children, the Titans, are bound in eternal torment for their transgressions. Like Hercules, the Titans are half-men, half god. Jove directs the youngest of the Titans, Krios (Giuliano Gemma), who is the savviest, but physically weakest of the Titans, to deliver Cadmo to Hades. In return, Jove will free all of the Titans.

Dubious subject matter for a comedy. But, after a slow start, that's just what this `sword and sandal' adventure is, largely thanks to a witty performance by Gemma as Krios, good `Jackie Chan' or `Crimson Pirate' style stunts and a few good sight gags, the funniest being the `sword' which Krios must use to fight Rator (Serge Nubret). In fact, the film bares a lot of resemblance to `Crimson Pirate,' right down to a mute sidekick. That is not to say `My Son the Hero' is as good as the classic `Crimson Pirate,' but it is DEFINITELY work a look.

Terrible dubbing, but good color cinematography, fine sets, fairly good special effects and amusing, tone-setting music.

The Turner Classic Movies print is pristine. Too bad they showed `My Son, The Hero' in `pan and scan.' Hopefully, they have a letterbox copy sitting in their vault somewhere.